The Albanese Labor Government is getting the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) back on track by improving outcomes for participants and ensuring the sustainability of the Scheme for future generations.

Reforming the agency which delivers the Scheme and ensuring every dollar goes to NDIS participants is an important part of our strategy in the 2023-24 Budget to create more opportunities for more Australians and improve government services.

As a first step, this Budget commits a total of $910 million over four years to improve the NDIS, and support and safeguard people with a disability and the Scheme. This includes $732.9 million to improve the effectiveness and sustainability of the NDIS and which will uplift capability, capacity and systems to better support participants:

• Capability: $429.5 million investment in the NDIA’s workforce capability and systems resulting in better consistency and equity in decision-making for access and planning decisions for NDIS participants
• Better planning: $73.4 million to better support participants to manage their plan within budget, including assistance from the NDIA during the year and holding plan managers, support coordinators and providers to account
• Flexibility: $63.8 million to take a lifetime approach to ensure plans are more transparent and flexible for life events
• Independent living: $56.4 million to strengthen supported independent living decisions, including by introducing a home and living panel with highly trained staff to improve consistency across decisions and updating guidelines for planners to improve participants' ability to live independently
• Evidence-based supports: $29.3 million to support the quality and effectiveness of services provided to participants, through improving oversight of services and increasing take up of evidence-based supports
• Blended payment trial: $24.6 million to work with participants and providers to trial blended payment models, to increase incentives for providers to innovate service delivery and improve outcomes
• First Nations and remote communities: $7.6 million to pilot approaches to partner with communities to improve access to supports in remote and First Nations communities
• Fraud: $48.3 million to crack down on fraud and non-compliant payments in the Scheme and to develop a business case for new IT platforms and systems to detect and prevent fraud and non-compliant payments.

We have listened to the concerns of the community and recognise that genuine change is required to deliver a Scheme that works for people with disability.

People with disability deserve an NDIS that works with them and their lives. That is why we are investing in these initiatives that will see improvements to the NDIS planning process, making the scheme overall easier to engage with.

As a second step, National Cabinet has committed to an NDIS Financial Sustainability Framework. While the Scheme remains demand driven, the Framework will provide an annual growth target of total NDIS costs of no more than eight per cent by 1 July 2026, with further moderation of growth as the Scheme matures. This will ensure the NDIS can continue to provide life-changing outcomes for future generations of Australians with disability.

The Government will work with the disability community and states and territories to implement these initiatives and the Framework and ensure that every dollar goes to support those who need it most.

The Budget also includes other measures to support and safeguard people with a disability and the Scheme:

• Watchdog: $142.6 million to support the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission to do its job of keeping NDIS participants safe
• Workforce: $14.1 million to deliver a COVID-19 Leave Grant to help stop the spread of COVID-19 to vulnerable Australians and support disability workers
• Policy funding: $13 million investment in the Department of Social Services to strengthen the Government’s oversight of the NDIS and get it back on track
• Younger People in Residential Aged Care: $7.3 million to further reduce the number of people under the age of 65 living in residential aged care.

The commitments in this Budget will ensure the NDIS is better prepared for the future.

The NDIS remains a Scheme the nation should be proud of and one the Government is committed to getting right.

Today’s Budget puts this commitment into action. With these initiatives we are paving the way for a better NDIS for people with disability today and those who may need the NDIS in the future.